By Jeff Appelblatt
Woodbridge High School’s football coach, Kevin Coleman, knew his team was facing the toughest opponent it faced all season in the first round of the NJSIAA North Jersey, Section II, Group IV playoffs, when it traveled to Middletown High School North Nov. 11. And yet, he had confidence his team could compete with the better-ranked Lions.
But the Lions quickly showed why they are the No. 2-seed and the Barrons are No. 7. Before the first quarter was over, Middletown North had a 20-0 lead.
“We shot ourselves in the foot,” Coleman said after the game. “After they scored, we got the ball. We fumbled, giving the ball right back. We can’t play like we did and expect to win.”
Middletown North’s offense quieted down the rest of the game, but the Barrons couldn’t find a way out of the early hole they fell into. When all was said and done, the Lions marched off with a 33-14 victory.
“We didn’t play well,” Woodbridge’s coach said. “Hats off to them, but we just didn’t play well.”
If the second half was its own game, Woodbridge won that one. But outscoring the Lions, 14-6, in one half just wasn’t enough.
Quassim Glover had a strong showing in the team’s final regular-season game — his first and only start at quarterback — but Coleman felt he was needed in the field to have a chance against Middletown North.
“We thought we’d be better off with him back there,” Coleman said about the 6-foot-1 senior, who has arguably been Woodbridge’s best receiver the last few years.
The Lions knew about Glover, who only got into the end zone once all night against them. And that trip was on a two-point conversion following a touchdown run by Keshaun Henry.
“They were double-teaming [Glover],” Woodbridge’s coach said. “At times, they even had three guys on him.”
It was Henry that took over quarterback duties for the Barrons.
“It’s not like it was his first time at quarterback,” Coleman said about Henry. “He’s been there a few times.”
The other times Henry was running the offense, though, he only did so briefly. And each appearance he had at quarterback was in relief. In those outings, Henry completed four of five passes. Against Middletown North, however, he only completed four of nine for a total of 38 yards. In addition, he threw an interception and was responsible for two of Woodbridge’s three fumbles.
“We couldn’t throw it with [Henry] back there,” Coleman remembered about the game, struggling to decide if the majority of the blame was to go on his offense or to Middletown North’s defense. “But we did have 257 yards rushing.”
In his years at Woodbridge, Henry was always known as a runner. And that didn’t change when he was conducting the offense. He ran the ball 17 times for 127 yards against the Lions. He also handed the ball over to Da’Avian Ellington 20 times, leading to another 130 yards.
But again, none of this surprised Middletown North. That team was prepared for all of Woodbridge’s strong points.
“Kickoffs — they kicked the ball high instead of kicking it far back,” Coleman said. “They weren’t letting it get to our top runners.”
Coleman knew his team needed to play at a level it hadn’t needed to reach all season. Only once all year had his club defeated a team with a record above .500.
And now it’s on to the offseason, following his first year as head coach — one that had its ups and downs for Woodbridge (5-5).
“It was a learning experience for me,” Coleman said. “Overall, it was not as successful as I wanted the season to be. But in the offseason, we’ll see what we could build on [for next year]. Then, if the kids buy in and do what they’re supposed to do, I think we should be able to compete every year.”
Many of Woodbridge’s top performers, including Glover and Henry, will be gone.
“It’s high school,” the coach said. “Four years, and they’re gone.”
With that in mind, Coleman is sad but excited to say farewell to the 20 seniors he coached.
“I’m excited for the upcoming banquet,” the coach said. “Then, it’ll be time to think about putting a good product on the field next year.”
